Project Journal - Final Thoughts
8/9/04
So this is it, then. The End. Ten weeks of playing around with webpages, robots, laptops, camcorders, subjects, and assistants have drawn to a close.
I learned a lot. Yes, that's a cliché, but it's true. I learned JavaScript, and how truly evil it can be. I learned that robots are far from predictable in their behaviors. I learned that wireless networks are far from reliable. I learned that if programmers didn't have someone to make them eat at conferences, they probably wouldn't.
And most importantly, I learned that I can leap into the deep end and still not drown.
I had no idea what I was getting into when this whole thing started. All I knew was that I would be doing some sort of project involving people and psychology. Somehow Cindy and I turned that into an experiment that already has me talking about maybe coming back next summer, to expand the idea and learn more about how people interact with robots. I don't know if I will be able to return, I'm not even sure if I want to just now, but the idea has me intrigued.
If nothing else, there is in me a distinct distaste for leaving things half-finished. I learned that as well.
There may come a day where I decide to go into computing research as a career. I have plenty of ideas for futures studies on this same topic that I could keep myself busy for decades, researching and writing up papers and attending conferences and so on. Thanks to this internship, none of it sounds so scary anymore. I may not be the world's best coder, I may not be the world's best project director, but I know now that I can do it. I know that I can create and run a study almost all on my own.
Nothing, not even $6000, can beat that confidence.
To the CRA-W, I thank you. I grew up this summer, and it would not have been possible but for you. This was a wonderful experience, and I will telling be stories about this until the end of time.